Committee approves tribal housing leader as representative

The Clallam County Housing Committee voted unanimously to appoint Jennifer Hutto to serve as the committee’s tribal representative. The motion to approve Hutto was made, seconded and carried with members indicating “Aye.”

Hutto introduced herself at the meeting, saying, “I am Jennifer Hutto, and I'm the executive director of the Lorelei Housing Authority. I worked for the housing for 20 years now.” She described a career that began as a mortgage counselor and included work in tax credit supervision before becoming director three years ago.

Committee members said they and regional partners had recommended Hutto. A committee member said that when the vacancy was discussed “Jen was the first name that came up” and that local officials viewed her background as a strong fit for the seat.

The appointment is subject to the committee’s standard administrative process for officially seating a representative; a member explained the group must forward the selection to the board of commissioners for final approval before the new representative “gets to sit up here with us.”

If approved by the board of commissioners, Hutto will take the tribal seat and participate in future committee business, including grant reviews and project updates.

The committee approved the agenda and minutes for the meeting at the start of the session and took the Hutto appointment during the committee’s regular agenda.